The Turnip Prince Returns!
by Hitomi Hotaru
Summary: Shortly After Howl and Sophie have their Happy Ending,a certain prince comes back! He promised he'd return saying Hearts change.... How does Howl handle this Turnip Head romancing his Sophie? And how does Sophie handle two suiters?
1. Wedding Preparations and Surprise Guests

The Turnip Prince Returns!

Sophie and Howl were finally settling down. There weren't any wars going on, no evil witches after him, and no strange walking (or hopping rather) turnip headed princes. Or at least Howl thought…

It had been about two months since Howl first met Sophie… and about one since he asked her to marry him. It was a marvelous scene. He set up dinner, made Calcifer make all the lights dim, and even dressed up. His only regret was telling Calcifer he was going to pop the question that night. Let's just say Howl was leading up to it… making sure all his words were just right… and Calcifer decided he was taking too long and told Sophie for him.

Cal has never seen so much work in his entire existence…

It all started on a rather peaceful day. Sophie was sitting in her little corner making wedding plans. Howl looked carefully over her shoulder hoping not to disturb her.

"Howl? What now?" Sophie inquired.

"What?! I didn't say anything! I'm just looking to see what you're working on that's all," He said quickly.

"Yeah… last time you were 'just looking' you made ten different changes to things I had already set up…," she replied. Howl just stood there rather guiltily. That was true… Howl had a fashion sense rivaling that of any high designer, so of course he had to make a little input… ok some… ok a lot…

"Anyway!" Howl tried desperately to change the subject, "When were we going to meet with the minister you knew?"

"Oh yes," Sophie said, "That's this afternoon! Oh I can't wait to see him again. I haven't seen him since…well… since I was little." Sophie smiled for a moment. She remembered her mother taking her and Letty to church the occasional Sunday with her father when he was still alive. Afterwards they would have a picnic lunch right outside of town.

Howl noticed her nostalgic look and had to comment, "So what are you thinking about?"

"Younger days…," she replied serenely.

When afternoon finally rolled around, they exited one of their new doors and headed toward the church. Upon arriving there Sophie spotted an old man sweeping the steps in front of the church and Sophie automatically recognized who it was.

"Father David!" She yelled happily.

The old Father turned around to see the young girl running to him. It took him a moment but he finally recognized who she was.

"Sophie Hatter!" He smiled as she hugged him, "I haven't seen you in ages my dear!"

"I know it's been while," she said back.

"Your hair! It looks… stunning my child," Father David commented.

"Thank you."

"How's your sister, Letty?"

"Oh she's doing just fine!"

"And your mother?"

This conversation went on and on to Howl. Some of the names he recognized from things Sophie had told him. Other's he just had no clue. He decided to go ahead and speed things along. He coughed loudly enough for Sophie to turn around and remember the original reason why she came.

"Oh yes Father," Sophie remembered. She gently pulled Howl next to her and smiled sweetly, "The real reason why I came was I wanted to ask you if you'd be so kind as to marry us?"

The sweet Father smiled, "Of course I would love to! Please won't you come in?"

They went into the church and the Father had to ask them a few questions. This was standard procedure for anyone who wished to get married. The Father needs to know the reasons before he lets just anyone get married. They answered all his questions and the Father saw they were all good.

"I will marry both of you," The Father announced, "Your reasons are good and I see you are both deeply in love," He smiled at them both and smiled back.

"Thank you, sir," Howl said gratefully to the Father. He didn't know too many people who'd want to marry Howl the wizard, but Father David did not seem to mind.

"You are welcome," the Father said in return, "So Sophie Hatter, do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?" he said jokingly pretending it was the wedding day.

"I do!" Sophie said standing up next to Howl.

"And Howl Penndragon, do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?" He continued.

"I do," Howl said smiling.

"Then does anyone have any reason why these two should not be wed-"

"SOPHIE!"

Howl and Sophie both turned to see a familiar face…


	2. Jealousy and Super Glomps

Hey thanks for all the reviews! I don't think I have ever received that many reviews for just one chapter! Sorry it took so long to update (and to leave you hanging on a cliffe) but i had such bad writer's block on this one! So thanks again and if you have any suggestions for me they are totally welcome! Anyways here ya go! Enjoy!

--

"Turnip!"

The Prince bowed gracefully.

-

Outside the church the three walked together. Sophie was between them and was catching up with "Turnip".

"It's so nice to see you again, Turnip!" Sophie exclaimed.

"Please call me Justin," He replied.

"So how are things with your government?"

"Stuck up as usual. It took me forever almost just to convince them that the 'enemy' hadn't captured me and that it had been some witch out in the waste lands who cast a spell on me."

"Wow… well at least they finally did believe you or that war would never have ended…"

"It's marvelous to see you again Sophie. It feels like forever since I've seen you."

"It's only been about a month…," Howl pointed out.

"Anyway," Justin continued, "How about a kiss," he pointed sweetly to his cheek, "Just for old times' sake."

Sophie smirked slightly thinking about it.

"C'mon…, even if I am your least favorite vegetable?" He said jokingly.

Sophie giggled and gave him a quick peck on the check, but it was enough to make Howl's fresh heart burn with jealousy and rage.

"So, what have you both been up to?" Justin asked.

Before Sophie could answer Howl grabbed her around the waist playfully and lifted up her left hand so Justin could plainly see the medium size diamond glinting on her finger.

"We are _engaged_," Howl said.

"Ah," Justin smiled slightly. Sophie for a moment could've sworn his eye twitched, "So…when is the wedding?"

"June 15," Sophie smiled, "Would you like to come?" Howl gritted his teeth into a forced smile, _"Why should Turnip come?!"_

Justin smiled back, "I would love to," It was only March. June's a while off… a plan began to develop in his head.

They walked on for a bit. The guys were still on either side of Sophie. Sophie and Justin were still catching up and Howl and Justin would shoot each other the occasional death glare while Sophie wasn't looking.

They got to their door and Sophie invited Justin in.

"Sophie, Howl your-," Markl yelled running towards them, but stopped and looked at Justin for a moment. He then recognized him, "TURNIP!" Markl ran and jumped on the prince which caused him to fall.

"Where have you been? What've you been doing? How are you? It's so great to see you again!" Markl said in one long breath while sitting on top of Justin's stomach.

"Heh,…oomph…I've been fine," he giggled under Markl's weight, "and please do call me Justin."

"Nah, you'll always be Turnip to me!" Markl exclaim while still on Justin's stomach.

"Um… Markl," Justin gasped from the weight that was now really getting uncomfortable.

"Yeah?" Markl replied.

"Could you… ya know… get off me please?" Justin said sounding a little out of breath.

"Oh! Yeah! Sorry!" Markl exclaimed as he crawled off.

Justin stood and gracefully brushed himself off, "It is nice to see you again."

Markl gave him a toothy grin, "And if you stay for a while you can help me do laundry!"

Sophie giggled remembering the time they all did laundry. Howl was confused. He should be. He had never washed anything and at that particular moment he was fighting the war.

Howl looked at Sophie as she was still grinning, "What?"

"I'll explain it to you later."

--

Yeah yeah yeah short. But like I said writer's block... a big scary evil writer's block... anyway review!


	3. Mother's see these things when you can't

Back at Justin's castle, the Prince stressfully paced the floor of his room. She's still in love… I should have come back sooner… why am I still thought of as the Turnip headed Prince! His head was filled to the brim with these and many other thoughts. He collapsed on a large chair in front of the grand fire place and let out an exasperated groan.

"And how am I supposed to WIN HER BACK!"

At that moment his mother, Queen Janice, had entered the room. Queen Janice was a pleasant woman who had bright green eyes and brilliant blonde hair which very well distinguishes her as Justin's mother. Her long purple gown swept the floor as she neared her son. As a queen one always steps lightly, and as a disgruntled prince one always covers one's face when in anguish. So of course he didn't notice her.

"Son-"

"WAHH!" Prince Justin leapt about three feet in the air until actually landing back in the seat, "Oh! Mother. It's you."

"Of course it's me. Who were you expecting? The Tooth Fairy?" She asked sarcastically.

"Well…," he started, "I was thinking more of Fairy Godmother, but close enough."

The Queen sat down next to him as he slouched down and cradled his head in his hands, "Oh mother! I don't know what to do!" He always preferred confiding in his mother rather than his father. His mother was always calm and collected and a wonderful listener. His father, however, was a bit… _eccentric_… Let's just say after the war had ended his father and the King of Sophie's country became close friends. I mean… playing with each others toy battle ships, close.

The queen stroked her son's back to soothe him, "Now let me get this straight. You've fallen in love with a girl who is in love with someone else."

Justin groaned, "Yes…."

"So the only thing you can do is try and win her heart before the wedding," The queen continued.

"I know what I have to do. I just don't know how to do it," Justin propped his head up.

The queen sighed, "Well… let's see… she was the one you met as a scarecrow… right?"

"Yes."

"Then let her get to know you. Since you obviously weren't able to tell her about yourself or do a whole lot (except jump around) let her get to know you a little better."

That was it. That was the solution. It was so obvious. He couldn't believe he missed it. Then again it's hard to really see something that's only an inch away from your nose. That was his plan. Visit. Visit everyday and talk about everything. He was bound to be more interesting than some flyboy wizard… right…?

Meanwhile back at Howl's castle, Sophie was going through her own troubles, her past at least. Seeing Father David again brought back so much it nearly overwhelmed her even though she didn't show it. Howl found her sitting by Cal and looking at an old photograph.

"Hey," Howl said softly.

"Oh, hey," Sophie softly replied.

"Whatcha lookin' at there?"

Sophie giggled, "Just an old picture of my family."

She held it up to let Howl see it. In the picture he make out the people (at least by description anyway). The tall man with the dark brown hair had to be Sophie's father. Next to him was a very _very_ happy looking blonde he guessed to be her mother. Then in front the one he noticed right off the bat was Sophie, who, though younger, looked practically the same. Her hair was still (of course) brown and tied into two little braids. Next to Sophie stood Letty. The cute little blonde had her hair bobbed around her face and looked happy just to be standing next to her sister on a sunny day.

"Beautiful," Howl commented.

"Yes, I miss them all," Sophie had a sad smile on her face. Howl hated seeing his beloved Sophie sad. He would use his magic and cover the entire world in flowers if he knew that would make her happy.

"Don't worry," Howl started, trying to cheer her up, "They are coming to the wedding."

"That's right," Sophie smiled a real smile, "Speaking of which you have to meet Mother and Letty!"

Howl gulped. He forgot about having to meet the mother.

--

Ha HA! I updated! aren't you proud! Thanks ten bunches for already over a thousand hits!


	4. Mid Life Crisis Perhaps?

No. No, no, no, no, NO! Howl couldn't believe his eyes as he looked into the mirror. His hair was combed, he had removed his earrings, and he was wearing a tie. A TIE! Of all the most horrendous things in this world, the worst, in Howl's opinion, had to be the tie. This was the final sign that he really and truly was in love with Sophie: He put on a tie for her mother.

"Howl! Hurry up! We're going to be late for lunch!"

Howl sighed an uneasy sigh as he looked back up at the mirror one last time. Sophie really sounded cheerful. He could do this… yeah…

Using the same door that lead them to Father David, Sophie and Howl arrived just in time to get to the Hatter's residence. Considering that the old shop had been destroyed during the war, the plan was to meet at Mrs. Hatter's new home. Then again she wasn't exactly Mrs. Hatter anymore either. She had remarried into money and thus became one of the riches ladies in town.

Sophie and Howl both were uneasy while entering her mother's new home. It was large and open and it somehow lacked a warmth that she could always find as soon as she stepped into the castle.

"Sophie!!!"

Sophie spun on her heels only to be knocked over by flying pinks and yellows.

"Letty!" Sophie slowly leaned up off the floor and found Letty and a rather concerned Howl next to her.

"Oh Sophie! I've missed you soo much!" Letty then went babbling on about something that Howl couldn't seem to keep up. He caught bits of it. Things like, "-Been so worried!" and, "OH your hair!" and even, just because his name was mentioned, "See you were pretty enough for Howl!" Sophie was sitting up and apparently followed everything but Howl was still vaguely confused.

"Oh!" Letty spun around and looked directly a Howl. This made him wonder if he should start running, "So you must be Howl!"

"Uh…yes?" Howl began.

"Wonderful! My name is Letty," she trust out a small hand for him to shake.

"So I gathered."

At that moment the former Mrs. Hatter slowly descended the stair case.

"Might I ask what everyone is doing on the floor?" Howl, Sophie, and Letty looked at each other and realized they were still sitting around at the bottom of the staircase when Letty pounced on Sophie. From that moment Howl knew things weren't going to work out well.

They were all seated in a small living area. Silence would have filled the void yet the sound of the grandfather clock ticking away in the corner prevented this. Howl sat there holding his possibly now cold tea, and felt way too awkward. Letty and Sophie looked back and forth at each other uneasily, but their mother simply sipped her tea and examined her cup.

After desperate attempts from Sophie trying to figure out what was wrong by mouthing words back and forth to Letty, she let out an uneasy cough.

"Well… mother…," Sophie began, "You never did tell me your new last name."

The mother looked up slowly, "Ah, yes… it's Baker now… and you never quite told me what happened to you." She looked slowly from Howl to Sophie.

"Mother, I sent you letters…," Sophie began.

"Only AFTER the fact," she replied.

"I'm sorry I had just been so busy-…"

"And now my baby's getting married!!" Sophie's mom flew from her seat and into an awkward hug with Sophie and the water works began.

Howl honestly didn't know what to think. He actually began to wonder whether or not Sophie was more like her father, because at the present moment she seemed like the only other sane person in the room. As for Sophie and Letty they both silently agreed that their mother must be having some kind of midlife crisis because the oldest daughter is getting married off.

After lunch and a few more tears from Mrs. Baker later, Howl let the three catch up and girl talk while he explored the house. While walking up the stairs he saw a few old family portraits. Some of the faces he recognized from when Sophie should him her picture. He saw one of just Sophie and her father. Mr. Hatter was leaned in close to a hat and working on it while Sophie sat next to him watching his every move. He noticed similarities in the two: same brown hair, same dark eyes and same perfectionist behavior.

His thoughts on the matter however were interrupted by the sound of a high pitched scream.

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Tada! I've finally updated! Sorry for the long wait... I've kinda had to put all my stories on hiatus for a while cuz school started back... I'll try better next time and Thanks for reading! Sorry it's short...


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